Gender And Gender : The Social Construction Of Gender

Throughout this course, we have discussed how the differences in the social construction of gender, race, class, and sexuality have led to discrimination and inequality of those classified under a variety of these categories. Through understanding the significance of these social constructs on society it becomes apparent the intersectionality they have when it comes to understanding why certain groups may face discrimination or inequality. This paper examines gender inequality and how the social construction of gender makes it difficult for the pursuit of equality amongst genders.

In present day all around the world, society has certain expectations for the actions and behaviors of males and females. There are many factors in our everyday lives that contribute to the gender norms that society has set. This essay will discuss how situations in life can play a part in how people treat other people based on their gender. It is believed that males are the leaders of our world, but in present day woman can do as much as men can do. From The Journal of Marriage and Family, Hu states, “Differentiated gender roles in adulthood are rooted in one’s gender role socialization. In order to understand the persistence of gender inequalities in the domestic sphere, we need to examine the gendered patterns of children’s housework time.”(2015, P.1). Gender roles are society’s expectations of the proper behavior, attitudes, and activities of males and females that they must be taught. These roles define how females and males are viewed in society, their household, and workplace. In The Journal of Sports behavior by Hardin, he states, “Although gender role differences from biological and “Natural” exists in popular consciousness, research has long demonstrated that instead, many are long time socially constructed… Individuals understand their gender because they are given names and treated in particular ways, such as dress in pink for girls and blue for boys, that reflect social construction of gender. Bandura's social cognitive theory is key in understanding the factors in socialization”(2009, P.3). Bandura's theory of of social cognition is that behavior, environmental events, and cognitive factors are the main keys that shape attitudes and actions of an individual. Although, gender roles play a very big part in our society, specific genders are treated differently while dealing with peer influence, media influence, as well as employment.

In this meme it show a women that looks like your stereotype hippie. She is use to personify the people who believe that “thinks gender is a social construct with no basis in biology” and “thinks conservation are science deniers”. The creator use humor to make fun of the people who believe that gender is a social construct and thinks the right wing are the one who science deniers but it is the ones who believe that gender is a social construct are the real science deniers. They are the real science deniers because gender is not a social construct it has basis in biology. The kind of humor style that is use in this is aggressive humor to mock the people that believe the idea that gender is a social construct. The supporters of the idea that gender is a social construct said that gender is taught to us by society and we are socialize into gender roles. I am going to go in details about why the idea that gender is a social construct is a myth by taking a look at gender socialization theory and what the experts who support it said the evident is.

Gender identity is an extremely personal part of who we are, and how we perceive and express ourselves in the world. It is a separate issue entirely from sex or sexual orientation. There are dozens of dynamic and evolving terms related to how people identify. “Although Children are taught that their genes decree whether they will grow into men or women, people are not born socially or culturally female or male. Like race and ethnicity, gender can be thought of as socially constructed” (Marsiglia & Kulis, 2015, p. 196). I identify as female because I was taught as a child that I am female because of the genital parts I was born with. I also feel like I am a female. I do have my beliefs on what being a female or male entails.

“The social construction of gender comes out of the general school of thought entitled social constructionism. Social constructionism proposes that everything people "know" or see as "reality" is partially, if not entirely, socially situated. To say that something is socially constructed does not mitigate the power of the concept. These basic theories of social constructionism can be applied to any issue of study pertaining to human life, including gender. This is

The way society is taught to be socialized is salient and goes unnoticed, therefore it is valid to claim that gender is socially constructed through our everyday practices, whether we are aware of the construction or not. With socialization beginning the instant a child is born, the process is continuous through out adolescence and varies dramatically across the two genders. With guidance from institutions and arenas such as education, sports, music and the mass media gender seems to be coerced, as it comes with a scripted set of behaviors and attitudes. This essay argues that gender is socially constructed on an everyday basis. To further explain this thesis the essay will draw on early childhood socialization of masculinity and femininity,

Gender identity is a highly controversial subject. The notion that one's gender is a significant determination of personality traits, behavioral characteristics, social tendencies, romantic engagements and self-perception is a critical one. However, it is also subject to debate because of the imperatives created by the social construct of gender. This often clashes with what are, in reality, more nuanced and individualized connections to gender. This is particularly highlighted by the interview which has informed the research here. Specifically, the interview subject is a male of the homosexual orientation who would endure difficulty as a child fully understanding the meaning of his gender identity. As the discussion shows here, this is a common emotional disorder for individuals contending with some sexual confusion but should also not be conflated with homosexuality itself.

The construction of gender has always been a controversial issue. We tend to think that gender is developed through a natural process as we experience it everyday, while it shapes us unconsciously into who we are, to how we think and why we do certain things in a considered gender-appropriate manner. From a sociological point of view, according to Macionis and Plummer’s study, cultural meanings about what is considered masculine and feminine varies from one society to another and from one historical period to another (2012). According to their study, this is all part of a gender order, which are the ways in which societies shape notions of masculinity and femininity into power relationships, this enhances the differences between both genders and our expectations of them in society. This categorisation involves various factors including gender identity, gender role, gender stratification, patriarchy and feminism, all of the above aspects contribute to the social construction of gender.

The society has regulations in which people have to obey making social life be structured. Society has expectations for people to live by. People tend to live up to the norms in order to feel part of the world. Individuals do not want to be judged and labeled, so unconsciously live by the roles that they believe their gender has to follow. Gender is socially constructed concept in which society acts upon. The family is the first to influence individuals to this idea. Gender has roles in which boys and girls are supposed to follow. Depending on one’s gender, they are expected to dress, behave, and act accordingly to either portray a masculine or feminine personality. These gender roles are implied by society and if individuals do not follow are seen as outcast. It is difficult for people to comply to these characteristics and roles because they might have different life experiences and situations that might influence to act other than their gender roles imply.

The way my father performed his gender has shaped the performance of my gender. My dad has also talked about raising me and my brothers as men but not as a binary concept but what he felt manhood represented. That involved in many things such as playing lots of sports or learning how to fight and other activities such as fishing. Although my dad never forced me to play sports it was always a staple in my household and I would- be mocked when I stopped playing a sport out of boredom. My dad constructed my gender self to view men as a group who had to become strong, fast, aggressive, dominant, and achieving in order to fit into society. This interaction with my family has caused my gender construction with others to be a byproduct of my experiences

From adolescence and on, people have dreams. They develop a sense of longing for a certain career or hobby, and push to make this dream come true. Boys wanted to be firemen, and girls wanted to be ballerinas. One dangerous and heroic, while the other is graceful and poised. Have you ever heard of these roles switched? Have you heard a little boy say he wants to become a famous ballerina, or a young girl saying she wants to put out fires? The society we live in today has taught and developed many from a young age to believe in stereotypes and specific gender roles; therefore, leading us to be blinded by the fact that any sex can do anything they put their mind to: specifically women. Women who have been told they “can’t” for their whole lives.

In the reading “The social Construction of Gender” by Judith Lorber she describes how gender is socially constructed. Sex is the biological difference while gender is the social and cultural meanings attached to femininity and masculinity (lecture). From the time that a child is born the doctor assigns it a gender, girl or boy, depending on its genitalia. In the reading “Naming All the Parts” it focused on how when doctors view genitalia to decide the gender they say there is a penis or there is no penis, no acknowledgment of the vagina. Gender construction begins when we start using gender markers such as naming a child a certain name, dressing it in certain colors such as pink or blue, and giving it gender based toys such as dolls for girls and cars for boys. As we get older we learn to behave in ways that are associated with hegemonic masculinity or exaggerated femininity (lecture). We are also expected to have specific careers based on our gender. Due to gender stratification, which is the ranking of the sexes in such a way that women are unequal in power, resources, and opportunities (lecture),women are more likely to have lower paying jobs, take care of children, and keep up with housework. At the same time men can earn more working the same job. We become who we become in response to the social forces relevant to society (lecture). Gender is socially constructed, but the function of gender in

Sociologist Peter Berger wrote in his “Invitation to Sociology” book that “social reality has layers of meaning, and the discovery of each new layer changes the perception of the whole.” (Berger 1963). Berger, as a sociologist responsible for helping create the social constructionism theory, is not just extending an invitation to sociology. He is already explaining how the world can be viewed by people who already are actively participating in society. This consciousness allows the layer of how people participate to be revealed, and under what circumstance do they engage in the discourse.

I personally feel as if even though gender is socially constructed, it is binary because these are the beliefs that a majority of the population has been raised to accept as normal for ages now. With a majority of the population identifying as either male or female and accepting the genders placed upon them, it will be hard to break this construction that has been imbedded in our mindset. When you have individuals that are different from the majority, they get ridiculed for not being like everyone else. This behavior has been going on since our young adolescents years, whether individuals point out others flaws, bully individuals for being different, etc. Therefore, since those who are transgender are seen as different to the majority this

The construction of a self-identity can be a very complex process that every individual is identity is developed through the lenses of cultural influences and how it is expected to given at birth. Through this given identity we are expected to think, speak, and behave in a certain way that fits the mold of societal norms. This paper aims to explain how gender perform gender roles according these cultural values. I intend to analyze the process in which individuals learned and internalized their respective gender identities, through their cultural background. I will be conducting a set of interviews with the intention to compare my experience as a self-identified male of Mexican descent, to the experience of another male character of Japanese heritage in order to understand how we come to self-identify as masculine in diverged cultures. In this paper, I argue that the construction of gender identities is a direct consequence of societal influential factors such as family values; values that reflect the individual’s culture. This analysis will not only utilize evidence from these identity formations, but also in explaining why and how these self-identities were constructed using both theoretical sources and empirical studies as a framework.